...Virtue, morality, and religion. This is the armor, my friend, and this alone that renders us invincible. These are the tactics we should study. If we lose these, we are conquered, fallen indeed...
Patrick Henry (1736-1799) US Founding Father

Today’s Guardian article (“Military Chiefs Give US Six Months to WinIraq War”) misrepresents the Baghdad advisers. So much so, it makes me doubt thereliability of the single, unidentified source responsible for much of thearticle’s reporting.

I hope SWJ colleagues will forgive this more "personal" post than usual,but as Senior Counterinsurgency Adviser I have a duty to set the record straighton this.

There is a real country called Iraq, where a real war is going on, withreal progress but very real challenges. We are not going to "win the war" in sixmonths -- nor would anyone expect to. But the Guardian seems to be describingsome completely different, (possibly mythical) country, and some imaginary groupof harried and depressed advisers bearing no resemblance to reality. Ascounterinsurgency professionals, we take an evidence-based approach and we arewell aware of the extremely demanding task we face. That makes us cautiousrealists -- but we are far from pessimists, as the Guardian's anonymous sourceseems to imply.

The article is littered with inaccuracies:• the “advisers” are not bunkereddown in the Green Zone, but in another location, and frequently out on theground.

• the article (incorrectly) describes me as a serving military officer– I’m a civilian diplomat, as any source truly familiar with the team's thinkingwould be well aware.• while recognizing the severity of the challenge, the team's mood is far from pessimistic. Success will take months or years, not weeks or days, and although early signs are somewhat encouraging it's really far too early to say how things will play out. The war has been going for four years, the new strategy for less than four weeks. Give it time.• the State department is not failing to meet its personnel targets. On the contrary, more than 90 % of civilian positions in Iraq are filled, and we will grow to 20Provincial Reconstruction Teams soon.• the coalition is far from disintegrating – British redeployment from the South reflects improved security, not lack of will, and the same day the British announced their move the Australians announced a force increase in both Iraq and Afghanistan.• The plan is not “unclear” or “constantly changing” – we all know exactly what theplan is. The article seems to be mistaking the freedom and agility which havebeen granted to us, allowing us to respond dynamically to a dynamic situation,for vacillation.

I am hoping that the press is forced to acknowledge not just the failings in Iraq, but its own failing. To have the ability to shape opinions is wonderful, but to do so dishonestly is, well, dishonest.

Paula Nowakowski

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